Overview
- On December 27, men described as right-wing activists stormed a Prem Nagar café in Bareilly and allegedly assaulted students at a private birthday party while shouting “love jihad.”
- Following the backlash, an FIR was filed under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita with sections 333 (house trespass), 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 352 (intentional insult), 351 (criminal intimidation) and 191 (rioting), according to SP (city) Manush Pareek.
- Police say they have arrested five suspects — Prince Singh, Aakash, Ashish Kumar, Mridul Dubey and Deepak — in connection with the attack.
- Two named accused, Rishabh Thakur and Deepak Pathak, have not yet been detained, and the investigation continues.
- Police initially fined two Muslim students and the café owner for “breach of peace” under BNSS sections 170, 126 and 135, a step later criticised online, and the host says she left her hostel and is fearful of further harassment.